Ljupco Nedelkov (Skopje, Macedonia) THE BIRTH RITUAL OF ...

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the shirt of the rodilka three times accompanied by the chant: "Deliver your child as easy as the hen lays her eggs" (Inf. no. 13). For the same purpose, a weaving pole (sovalka, frlacka, cevkarka, tkajacka) was laid under the shirt of the rodilka. Another necessary act of magic was to untie all knots around the body of the rodilka (Inf. no. 14). One of the oldest acts of magic used during birth was untying all knots and undoing all buttons. These activities were performed because it was believed that closeness symbolically provoked negative magic acts. That is why, Frazer underlines, the knots had to be untied during birth (J. Frazer, 1992:305). According to imitative magic, knots represented realistic obstacles which made birth more difficult. The hair of the rodilka was undone for the same reasons. According to the popular Tikves tradition, women used to give birth while kneeling or standing, and the newborn was supposed to touch the ground the moment it left his/her mother's womb (Inf. no 6, 11). This act is linked to the symbolism of Earth as a general cultural-anthropologic category. In some local variations, during birth the child was supposed to fall in hay or in a kopan - a hollowed out wooden bowl used for feeding the cattle; an act of magic which, aided by agricultural symbols, brings the newborn in touch with Nature. Later on these rituals were secularized, so during birth the child was left to fall in a bowl, in bed or the babica simply caught him/her in her hands. After the act of separation, the babica would cut the umbilical cord. Ritualmagical activities followed; around the point which measured three fingers a woolen thread or a lock of the hair of the rodilka was tied; another three fingers were measured and the cord was cut (Inf. no. 6). In the past, the cord was cut by using stones. That is why our informant says: "The umbilical cord is hit by two stones and thus torn" (Inf. no. 3). In the areas where agriculture was prevalent, the umbilical cord was cut using a scythe (Inf. no. 15), and if sheep-raising was dominant the umbilical cord was cut with krklozi (sheep shears) (Inf. no. 15). After the physical separation, the child would be laid in the manger for a while (Inf. no. 16). Since it was highly valued, the umbilical cord was stored in a secret location. It was believed that it possesses magic power and that using it may be fatal to the newborn. Special care was taken not to leave the remainders of the birth (the blood) in places which could be in contact with the impure forces: the threshing floor, the boundary, the threshold etc. These places symbolize impure magic which, according to the principle of the contiguous, would affect the newborn. That is why the blood and the linen had to be buried in a blessed and pure part of the earth, or under a tree which was young and fruitful. It was believed that in that way the child would advance and grow like the tree. 3. Leunstvo The leunka (nursing mother) and the newborn were partially isolated until the fortieth day - in a special ritual room, they were hidden from the public and fully shielded against any touch with the carriers of the impure and dangerous: dusk, navi (goblins) and uroci (evil spells). This was an attempt to establish new boundaries in space which would demarcate the categories my own : somebody else's. Dusk, the carrier of the impure, was considered especially dangerous for the newborn. It was believed that in that period the demonic forces were becoming active.
That is why people made sure they had finished all the activities related to the rodilka and the newborn before dusk. The newborn's diapers had to be collected before dusk. If for any reason the diapers came in direct or indirect contact with dusk, then according to the principle of suggested the diapers were lustrated with the following ritual: they placed them above fire and dispelled dusk by using the light. The interior of the place in which the ritual was performed was lighted: there was a petroleum lamp in the room, or twigs were set on fire (Inf. no. 17). If the leunka left the room in the night, then she would carry a kindling on fire, matches, tinder or any other objects which immediately refer to the codified function of light and fire. According to popular belief, the supernatural creatures called navi posed a grave danger for the rodilka and the newborn in this critical 40 day period. According to the Tikves <strong>Macedonia</strong>n national mythology, the navi are invisible and are not clearly represented in iconography. Since they are incorporeal and invisible, their presence could be seen in their deeds. The leunka would feel spasms, headaches, suffocation, she would lose consciousness, her milk supply would run out; she would get fever, or, god forbid, they could cause sudden death of the nursing mother or the newborn (Inf. no. 2). There were different preventive and protective rituals: live coals would be placed on the door threshold, a cross would be written, garlic or basil would be hung on the door, an axe would be placed, red thread would be wound (Inf. no. 18); in that way, a boundary of fire would be created between the ritual, consecrated space of the nursing mother and newborn and the space where the impure forces could roam freely. Protective measures were taken in the interior as well: things which give off unpleasant smell were set on fire, garlic and basil were laid; tongs, broom, a wooden stake, black cloth and other sharp object were placed next to the newborn in order to guard the newborn from these demonic and quite dangerous forces (Inf. no. 16). Unlike dusk and the navi, which belong to the other, ontological world, the uroci are caused by direct influence of evil, uroklivi eyes (i.e. eyes which cause evil spells). The belief in the magical power of the human gaze is universal. Not everyone had this ability. The people who had the ability to commune with the representatives of the other world were believed to have uroklivi eyes. Such people usually had blue eyes, or were povrateni (stopped sucking their mother's milk and then started again) or envious; people whose heart was evil and spiteful etc. (Inf. no. 16, 19, 20). If an evil spell was cast, there were many symptoms: fever, rash, incessant cry of the newborn, green line around the eyelids, eyelashes stuck together, vomit, constant yawning etc. (Inf. no. 3). This belief's magical-animistic content entails taking adequate measures for protection against uroklivi eyes. The best protection was achieved when the people undergoing the ritual were kept away from the ones believed to be capable of casting uroci on them and thus endanger their health, psychological and physical integrity as well as their future existence. There were different kinds of preventive measures. Marks were used: a coal and tar mark was drawn on the face of the newborn. Different ritual objects were attached: the following objects were placed on the child's hat - a mole's leg, a bumblebee's egg, a rabbit's tail, a golden coin, a cross, beads, glass trinkets, ornamental horseshoes etc. (Inf. no. 5, 21, 22). He/she was protected by ritual dirtiness: the newborn was spat on, its first feces or blood was applied on the baby (Inf. no. 6). Magic
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Ljupco Nedelkov (Skopje, Macedonia) THE BIRTH RITUAL OF ...

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